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Revisiting Eric!

Posted by sm1d on January 19, 2009

The Eric Bartholomew

When I was a kid, our family holidays were spent in Morecambe, at the nearby Pontins holiday camp at Middleton Towers.(The home of that legendary fried bread!..Ed) Last summer after a holiday break in North Wales, I came off the M6 to visit Morecambe, it’s been a good 30 years since I was last there, and my main reason for the fleeting call was to see the statue of one of my comedy heroes Eric Morecambe on the seafront.

We spent a couple of hours looking around the town before heading off home, with the most noticable thing about the town was there are stacks of public houses, mentally noted for future reference for when I return to visit Morecambe FC, that return came less than six months later for The Shrimps League Two clash with Gillingham on 17th January.

I started off with my usual visit to the local JD Wetherspoons, whichever town I visit I always stop off at the local JDW (I have to, IT’S LAW!..Ed) The Morecambe branch is named after the great man himself; Eric Bartholomew, and is found at the bottom of Euston Road, between the Arndale Centre and the seafront. I was disappointed to find the pub bearing the comedians name but with no pictures and memorabilia inside, just the usual Wetherspoons fare and layout. There was a copy of the latest ‘Wetherspoons News’ on the pub table, I read that the pub chain have won the Corporate Provider ‘Loo of the Year’ awards, congratulations to them on winning such an prestigious award, so not only am I honoured to drink in their hostelries but proud to piss against the silver aluminium in the country‘s #1 bogs.

Supped – Burton Bridge ‘Golden Delicious’ (3.8%)****

Smugglers Den

I then headed off to Morecambe’s oldest pub the ‘Smugglers Den’ which is tucked away in Poulton Road, hidden off the main Euston Road/Lancaster Road and is well worth seeking out. The pub is allegedly haunted and lives up to it’s name, with the décor having artefacts and pictures of a Smugglers theme, with the main focal point being the stain glass windows displaying scenes of shady dealings. The pub is very cosy with a good selection of beers, I decided on a pint of ‘Spitfire’ with Morecambe’s opponents being Gillingham I thought a bit of equality was needed, so I took the Kentish Ale as my bevvy of choice. The ’Smugglers’ is a smashing little pub and I would highly recommend a visit, not unless your shit scared of ghosts of course!

York Hotel

Supped – Kentish Ale ‘Spitfire’(4%)****

The York Hotel is a good five-ten minute walk from Christie Park, further along Lancaster Road. This seems to be the usual pre-match pub for away fans, there’s a pool room at the back of the bar with the walls covered with a large collection of scarves donated by visiting supporters. The pub also has a main bar with a dining area at the front, there’s Sky Sports showing in the bar and pool room and a adjoining (smokers) terrace with seats at the back. The pub stocks Everards real ales and Black Sheep Bitter and seems very friendly, a good pub choice if you’ve only got time for a pre match ‘quicky’

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This entry was posted on January 19, 2009 at 4:43 pm and is filed under AWAY.
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